Laila Taher Bugaighis () is a Libyan

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

and

human rights activist A human rights defender or human rights activist is a person who, individually or with others, acts to promote or protect human rights. They can be journalists, environmentalists, whistleblowers, trade unionists, lawyers, teachers, housing campai ...

. She is the CEO and former deputy director general of the

Benghazi Benghazi () () is the List of cities in Libya, second-most-populous city in Libya as well as the largest city in Cyrenaica, with an estimated population of 859,000 in 2023. Located on the Gulf of Sidra in the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean, Ben ...

Medical Centre, one of only two

tertiary care Health care, or healthcare, is the improvement or maintenance of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delive ...

hospitals in

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

. She is the founder and chair of the National Protection Against Violence Committee, a part of the

National Transitional Council The National Transitional Council (NTC) was a transitional government established in the 2011 Libyan civil war. After rebel forces overthrew the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya of Muammar Gaddafi in August 2011, the NTC governed Libya for a further ...

's Health Ministry. Bugaighis is also a member of the Scientific Committee for Reproductive Health of Libya, and co-founder of the political

NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

Al Tawafuk Al Watani Democratic Organization.

Biography

Bugaighis studied medicine at

Benghazi University The University of Benghazi (), formerly known as Garyounis University, is a public university in Benghazi, Libya, the country's second-largest city as well as one of the most prestigious institutes of higher education in the country. It was fou ...

. She is a consultant obstetrician and gynecologist, and a member of the

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) is a professional association based in London, United Kingdom. Its members, including people with and without medical degrees, work in the field of obstetrics and gynaecology, that is ...

. Also a

women's rights activist Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

, Bugaighis advocated against implementing a quota on the participation of women in Libyan politics, believing it would "reduce the chances of the right qualified women getting seats in parliament". She has called for greater legal protection of victims of

domestic violence Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes r ...

, access to abortion in cases of rape, and reform of the country's

family law Family law (also called matrimonial law or the law of domestic relations) is an area of the law that deals with family matters and domestic relations. Overview Subjects that commonly fall under a nation's body of family law include: * Marriag ...

. She is the sister of Wafa Bughaighis, the Libyan ambassador to the United States. Her cousin was

Salwa Bughaighis Salwa Bugaighis (24 April 1963 – 25 June 2014) was a Libyan human rights and political activist. She was assassinated in Benghazi, Libya on 25 June 2014. Life and career Bugaighis was from a prominent Benghazi family and trained as a lawyer a ...

, a Libyan human rights activist who was assassinated in 2014.

Honours

She is a distinguished visitor at the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at

Georgetown Law Georgetown University Law Center is the law school of Georgetown University, a private research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It was established in 1870 and is the largest law school in the United States by enrollment, with over ...

. She regularly gives speeches at universities in the United States.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bugaighis, Laila Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people) Living people Gynaecologists Libyan businesspeople Libyan feminists Libyan physicians Obstetricians Libyan women activists Women chief executives Women gynaecologists